


It Takes A Big Man To Be Someone

by fffan201



Category: Take That (Band)
Genre: Crazy World, Creamcakes, Drama, Friendship/Love, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Romance, Take That - Freeform, barlliams
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-03
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2019-08-17 01:27:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16506641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fffan201/pseuds/fffan201
Summary: What would a world look like if it not only literally grows over your head, but also does so in reality? In this crazy story here, the impossible really happens and one of the Take That guys will now have to look at the world with completely different eyes and thereby gets to see interesting perspectives.





	1. We Are Giants

Yawning, Gary awoke from a troubled slumber and tried to remember what happened yesterday evening. Yet his memories were patchy. He only remembered how he had gone to a bar with his three best friends after a Take That concert and then had to have exposed his brain after so much around the third glass. As a result, his head also boned like wild and so Gary sometimes felt that a wild woodpecker omitted his aggression on him.

In order to be able to do something about his headaches, he immediately visited the bathroom and thus went directly towards his medicine cabinet. But on half of the track Gary suddenly stopped, because something came under his eyes, that could not be completely and he therefore wondered how something came within his four walls. In his bathtub was actually a suit, with a tied tie around the collar, which definitely did not belong to him. He recognized this alone in terms of size, which was clearly a few numbers too big for him. While he took a closer look at the scraps, a smell rose to his nose - which seemed quite familiar to him. It somehow smelled like a certain aftershave, which in its closer circle of acquaintances actually used only one. When the associated name came to mind and wanted to say it out loud, Gary suddenly heard a slightly squeaky and subdued voice. 

"Gary?"

Where in God's name did the voice come from? There was no one here in the bathroom but himself. Did Gary go among the schizophrenics recently and accordingly heard any voices in his head? ...No. That couldn't be the case. 

"Gary!" The voice could then be heard again.  
"Um, ...yes?" Gary simply spoke into the empty room.  
"Help me."  
"Who is there?"  
"It's me, Robbie."  
"Ro ...Rob? What ...what the hell is that supposed to be? Are you so bored yet again that you want to settle for one of your so-called games at the expense of my feelings? ...And besides, where are you?" Gary reacted somewhat dismissively to the name of the invisible person, whom he would like to forget at the moment. 

Why shouldn't he? For one thing, Gary really didn't feel like getting involved in any games from his ex-boyfriend. Even though their separation was now just over two months behind, it still hurt him. After a three-year and happy relationship, Gary had to be told by Robbie that he was something of a pastime - just a hobby. The Gary's world then, and as expected in thousands of shards, didn't really have to be mentioned, did it? Even though he was hurt and deeply disappointed by Robbie in the nastiest, he still possessed a secret weakness for him. Robbie was and will remain forever his dream man.

 

Despite everything, he tried to forget him as best he could and also didn't want this damn good-looking guy to step back in his life and continue to play with his feelings. For this bad joke to finally come to an end here he looked for Robbie's words - "I don't know. Everything here is so dark.", after a bug, mobile phone or the like. So the first thing he did was lead a hand into the inside pocket, where Gary actually grasped something, too. Yet somehow it felt jarring. Then, when he pulled this groped out to the daylight and shortly afterwards took a look at a fidgeting and screaming something, Gary got big eyes and had to scream out loud in the process with fright. Unfavourably wise, at the sight of a shrunken Robbie, he dropped him and found himself on the ground within a fraction of a second. 

"W ...what’s the hell!" Tripped Gary, peering over to the bathtub with his eyes ripped open.

How was it possible? A Robbie Williams in miniature format couldn't possibly be real and so Gary believed he had to hallucinate. Apparently, because of his alcohol consumption, his hangover even gave him a further consequence. Other than that, Gary just couldn't explain it. Hoping he could really push it onto the booze and thus see it as a hallucination, he crawled toward the plumbing, lifted his head slightly and carefully loaded into the inside. And in such a way that only his eye area could be seen. 

When his look hit a roughly six-inch tall Robbie, Gary couldn't believe it. How could a person become as small as an action figure? What distorted reality was that just? What kind of adventurous and crazy story had he come up with again?

While all these questions sputtered through his mind, he suddenly feared Robbie may have seriously hurt himself after that fall.

"Oh God, Rob. I'm really sorry about that. Is ...is everything OK with you? Did I hurt you? Are you still alive?"Gary apologized right away for his physical offense to his friend and hoped Robbie was still among the living.

Perceiving a groan from his abnormal little friend, Gary breathed a little time in relief. Thank God he was still alive. He could never and would never forgive himself if Robbie stepped out of life prematurely and far too soon through his fault. Despite their separation, he would never intentionally want to do anything to him.

After straighten up agonisingly slowly and with one hand on his back, Robbie initially glanced against a white wall, wondering where he was. But the moment he turned his gaze upwards, seeing a gigantic Gary in the process, he rejected a pointed scream and instantly got to do with the fear. To which Robbie took flight and tried to free himself from his prison. Which’s, of course, was impossible for a naked Robbie in his current situation. Only ...he was not aware of it at that moment and so he tried to escape over the slightly bevelled and still quite steep side for him. Yet the wall was far too smooth and there was no hold either. It was only after the sixth attempt, when Robbie became aware of it that an escape was impossible, that he was desperately looking for a suitable hiding place. Which he then found in this huge scrap’s of cloth beneath his feet.

Since Gary watched Robbie as a bellowing Robbie and had seen at which point this little guy had disappeared, he grabbed immediately boldly in the suit and brought out a defensive and loudly protested "Lilliputian." While keeping Robbie in a safe and not too firm grip, Gary turned to the sink and eventually put his little friend down on the shelf. No sooner had he given Robbie his freedom back than he could not get to safety quickly enough and sought shelter behind a toothbrush cup. 

"Oh you holy Mother of God, I don't think so. Rob ...what the hell happened to you?"  
"Why with me? Look at yourself. You ...you monster."  
"Um. I don't know how to tell you, but you're the freak here not me. I'm as big as I always am. You ...you kind of shrunk!"  
"I'm supposed to do what? Are you kidding me?"  
"If you don't believe me, look around."  
At his words, Robbie looked around so far and when he saw himself in the mirror, he suddenly turned white like a wall and stammered in front of him: "No. No. T-t-that ...that can't be. How ...how is that possible? What ...what... what did you do to me? Do that’s immediately undo."  
"One moment please. You seriously believe I'm responsible for that? Who or what do you think me are? I'm not like you, playing with the feelings of others out of boredom. A few seconds ago I got you out of the bathtub and because without my help you would never have made it out of there. ... And at all, what are you doing here? How did you get in here?" Gary raised his voice and just couldn't believe that his ex-boyfriend blamed him for his predicament.  
"Stop shouting at me like that. Your voice sounds like a compressed air hammer and hurts in my ears." Robbie listened to his ears with a painful facial expression and then added, "And besides, how would you react if not only the real world but everything else grew over your head?"  
"Probably not different. ...But that doesn't give you the right to let me scapegoat for your current situation. You know full well that I have not lost a bad word to you, nor that I could ever do anything to you. I'm not. Do you even know how much your words hurt me?" Gary admitted small-loudly that he wouldn't behave any differently and let Robbie know he felt hurt by him and because of these words, once again.  
"Sorry. I ...I probably get guided too often by my fears. ...Just like last time."  
"What do you mean by that?"  
"Nothing." Robbie left the one question in the room, staring at his own reflection.

 

While Robbie was looking at himself, he fell into a deep hole and felt even smaller than he already was. The last two months had already been tough enough for him and now he also had to expose himself with a reality that not only literally grew over his head. Just like everything else. Even his ex-boyfriend, who’s was otherwise half a head smaller than him. Confronted with his own and completely new reflection of himself, the fear arose in him instantaneously that he would stay that way forever. That from now on he had to lead the life of a Lilliputian. The danger that he could get under any feet or between foreign toes was decidedly far too great for him. What kind of life that would be if there was no future prospect. ...What kind of adventurous and unreal story had he come up with again? This could truly mean its ultimate downfall.


	2. If Your Life’s Helpless Then It’s Time

After a felt eternity, which in the real world only lasted a close minute, Robbie had enough of this unfair star duel with his mirror image and turned his slightly clouded gaze to the ground. He just didn't know what to make of this Lilliputian existence. While he tried to see an advantage from it for himself, he did not even quietly come up with an idea of how to proceed. In addition, an inner voice whispered to him that he was punished for something. ...And even if it did, he wouldn't even know for what. After all, he had done a lot of things wrong in his life so far.

 

In his thoughts, Robbie did not get the same at first, as he was approached by his gigantic ex-boyfriend and asked about his condition. Whether he would be reasonably well off according to the circumstances, which he’s finally denied after repeated many times. Actually, Gary saw it to him that Robbie was by no means comfortable in his skin and yet he had to ask this one unnecessary question. Just to get this out of its apathy. So they could talk about how things were going now and how Robbie got to his normal size as soon as possible. But Gary didn't even have a single idea how to do it. It was just an unfamiliar situation that was not really allowed to give and yet they had no choice but to face it and somehow make the most of it, which was especially true for Robbie.

No sooner had the dejected Robbie turned to Gary again, he was told with the words, "I know you like to walk around naked, but ... here. So you don't get a cold, "a white cloth held up. Robbie accepted it gratefully and made a toga of it. When he finished with it and presented his new outfit, Gary said that he liked him so much better at that moment and gave a little speech about not being discouraged by this unusual situation and that somehow they’re already getting through, together. That Gary agreed to do so, about Robbie's final mistake towards him, and would do everything possible to get his friend back to his normal size as soon as possible. That Gary didn't want to let him down on his own now, so Robbie was immensely pleased and yet he wondered why he did. After all, his ex-boyfriend possessed more than a good reason to hate him.

While still thinking about what Gary had all of this, he suddenly grinned at him and asked if he knew who he remembered with his current appearance. After Robbie merely gave him a shake of the head, Gary didn't belong in coming with a response either.

"At the character of Octavius ...from the film series _Night in the Museum_."  
"Do you think?" Robbie could only ask back, looking at his reflection in the process.  
"Yes ...and now come on, get on my hand. We should look for a better place and think about how we can get you bigger again."

Robbie looked at the held hand sceptically and so had his concerns to pursue this invitation. After all, he didn't want to fall down and possibly break his neck in the process. In addition, the memories of their last tour together came up to him again. Where Mark and Howard each stood on the hand of a gigantic robot and plunged into the depths during a concert. He did not want to experience something like that himself and by the way, his fall from earlier had not been without. 

"What is? ...You don't need to be afraid. I'm not going to drop you already. ...Your life is far too sacred for that." 

Towards the last eight words, Robbie took a seated and reasonably safe seat on Gary's hand, holding on to his little finger.

 

When they were in the living room soon after, Gary put his little friend down on the couch and initially suggested he drive to a doctor with him and get advice there on what best to do in such a situation. But Robbie wasn't exactly fazed by this idea and didn't want to be shown in public. He was kind of embarrassed. 

"All right, then not. ...Maybe you're not an isolated case either and the news is already full of it." Gary kept considering.  
"And what's the point of that? I mean, how is a realization supposed to help me if it were to get back to my normal size within a few minutes?" Robbie was a bit sceptical that there were other people who shared his situation with him and was also sure, with speeches alone, he couldn't be helped. 

Without giving him an answer, Gary reached for the television control and immediately called up the news station. Fortunately, the volume was low and so Robbie didn't get the feeling that he was being literally cloaked. No sooner had a picture opened up than their attention was already caught by the word "Lilliputian syndrome" and just couldn't believe what they saw. With the chin lad down, they saw more little people of different sizes being shown. Some were even smaller than Robbie was.

 

" _According to reports, a mysterious event happened last night that's not widespread. Still, overnight, some of our citizens were inexplicably ...shrunk. And no, you see properly adored viewers. This is not a technical trick. It's Real. The scientists call this phenomenon “Lilliputian Syndrome” and are completely at a loss as to how this could come about. So far, about two dozen people have been identified suffering from this so-called disease and vary in size. This housewife here, measures in about two and a half inches. The local authorities call on the rest of the population to check if necessary, according to friends and neighbours who have not been seen. …_ " Spoke an exceedingly serious three-glancing reporter into the camera.

Before the reporter switched back to the news studio, Gary turned off the TV again and rededicated himself to his friend. 

"As I guessed, you're not the only one."  
"I think I'm going to get bad." Robbie could only say to that.  
"It doesn't need to. I'm sure the scientists will find a way." Gary was confident.  
"Your optimism in all honours Gaz, but I'm really not doing well. ...Something’s wrong." Robbie tried to tell his friend that it was more than he had said it in front of him and kept his stomach groaning.

The moaning grew louder and louder, eventually ending in a mark-shattering scream. What Gary then got to see, he wouldn't even imagine himself in his wildest nightmares, staring at Robbie with big eyes. Gary actually had to watch his friend shrink again before his eyes and couldn't do anything for him. Within seconds, Robbie could no longer be seen and Gary already believed he had disappeared altogether. So he carefully lifted the cloth towel slightly with two fingers and exhaled in relief when he saw a naked and teetering Robbie lying in the foetal position.

"Oh my God. Rob? ...Rob? Hey, talk to me mate." Gary wanted to get his ex-boyfriend's attention.  
"That ...hurts so much." Robbie let him know after a while that he was reasonably responsive.

Gary looked compassionately at Robbie and didn't know what else to say. So he left it and instead gently stroked his back with a finger. At first Robbie shuffled something at the bigger man's touch, but then he let it happen and was extremely grateful to Gary for standing by him. For Gary, of course, it was a given and wanted to show him that he was there for him. Using an approximate and cautious estimate, Gary assumed Robbie now owned about a size three inches. ...What was this just a crazy world?


	3. Some Are Gods And Some Are Monsters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that you had to wait from me for something new so long. I was so unmotivated to write or translate anything, but thanks to Gary I have my motivation again. I'm finally writing again and even if it's going a little slow, it feels good. Thank you for your patience.

After Robbie shrunk before his eyes and the much smaller one still suffered the consequences, Gary wondered how far this went. How small could his Ex-boyfriend still get? Up to the Size of a flea or would he even just make *Plopp* at some point and disappear? Wanting neither for Robbie, he made a promise to himself. A Promise by making sure that no one is doing anything to his tiny friend. No matter what it were.  
When the quiet whimper of Robbie, and with it his pain, had finally come to an end, Gary was also torn from his dark thoughts. In an empathetic and not too loud voice, he finally cautiously asked whether he would be reasonably well again in the circumstances. But instead of an answer, he got to hear the counter-question about what had happened in the first place.

"You ...you've kind of shrunk even further!"  
"What? N-No. How ...how much?" The panic rose in Robbie and already had the picture in front of him as he had to prove himself in a flea circus in the near Future.  
"I don't know how to tell you, but ... just over Half." Gary tried to wrap it up as gently as he could and rushed to calm Robbie, "But hey, it's not as bad now as you think. I mean ...you are still you and, more importantly, visible to the human eye."  
"Not bad, not so bad? Damn Gary, if this continues I will soon not exist! I ...I already see how I shrink to the size of a flea next time and I find myself resisting on a travelling circus called dog."  
"So Far it doesn't get. I’m ...I'm sure you don't have to get through this process again and you get even smaller as a result." Gary didn't sound convincing at first, but he got the curve and spoke in a much firmer voice ... "Judging by the report and if I think about it this further, you have now reached your final minimum size. In one where you can still act and at least do something like, for example ... could you dress rats."  
"Very funny. I can't laugh about it at all."  
"Listen, Rob. I know it doesn't exactly look good, but please don't make it so difficult for yourself and see it as a unique chance to look at life from a different angle. I mean ...enjoy the view."  
Robbie briefly looked up to him, patterning Gary for a moment and somehow trying to describe the closest perspective: "Do you also mean those where you look into a nose and wave a densely wooded jungle with the indigenous people? You should urgently think about having your nose hair cut."  
"Hey. Whatever grows in a man's nose, no one goes to what. Especially for those who are many times smaller than me." Gary played the outraged and grabbed on his nose so that Robbie didn't get another and even deeper insight into his interior. 

Whereupon Robbie could only grin at him cheekily and merely thought that he accepted the challenge and that there was once a David who had beaten Goliath. Gary wanted to mention something when they suddenly heard a noise and then, as if in a split second, a very rushed Howard came to stumble into the living room purely.

 

Twenty minutes ago, Howard had received a text message from Gary saying there was an emergency with which his friend did not feel "grown". Because of their close friendship, which connected them and Howard was thus Gary's reference person, it was also natural for the elder to leave everything standing and lying down in an emergency. To which he even lost his decency each time, occasionally shooting beyond the actual target by – unasked and giving himself access wherever. In this case, he had used a spare key here. But no sooner had Howard entered the living room than he stumbled across a carpet edge and landed on the floor shortly afterwards. Thankfully, due to the soft carpet, he hadn't done anything to himself. Only his sight, which resembled an overrun Frog – which had stretched all the limbs away from him, suggested something else. Just because of that Howard didn't bother to get back on his feet.

"Did you do anything to yourself? Is everything OK with you? ...Or does the frog have trouble getting back into the Quak?" Gary asked slightly worried at first and after perceiving a quiet groan from his friend, he couldn't resist a little saying.  
"Hahaha. Very funny. No, it's slowly going again. I ...I... Just had to catch my breath again." Let Howard play his sarcasm and only needed a moment to get air, but when he spotted a shrunken Robbie with one eye, he suddenly woke up again.  
"R-Robbie? What the hell happened to you?" He crawled with those words in no time and with big eyes toward the younger one. 

When he was right in front of him, Robbie scared together a bit anxiously, taking two, three steps back in the process. However, the moment – where he wanted to make another backwards, he was also already grabbed by a huge hand. While Howard was straightening up, Robbie slipped away all facial features and panicked him in a way he had never felt in his entire life. So he fidgeted around like wild with his arms and legs, yelling at the rather tall Howard to let him down again. But Howard didn't even listen to what he was screaming and lifted him up so far until Robbie was on par with him. Whereupon the three-inch tall Robbie was even held with just two fingers. 

"Howard no, not." Gary tried to stop the elder from tackling Robbie so crudely.  
"I'm not going to hurt him already. I just want to take a closer look at him." Howard interjected and looked at his Lilliputian friend in depth.  
"But you do and besides, you're treating him pretty insecure right now. If you let him go now, that would be his sure death. "Gary got to deal instantly with the anxiety and wanted Howard to quickly put his ex-boyfriend back in his care, "Give him to me."

So Gary put his two hands into each other, formed a closed funnel and no sooner had he stretched for his little friend something like a safety net than Howard Robbie just let go without a word of warning.

"For goodness sake, Doug. Please be careful. You can't drop Rob so easily and treat him like a toy. He's like you and I still a human being." 

As a result, Gary stepped two, three steps away from his best friend – to get some distance from him and instantly devoted all his attention to the little guy in his hands. Robbie was white as a wall and his entire body was shaking incessantly. It was a sight that Gary didn't like at all and after the singer sat down on the couch again, he carefully placed the most beautiful man in his eyes on a pillow. 

"Robbie? ...Rob? Is everything OK with you? Is it going again?" Asked Gary at one point visibly worried and in a subdued voice, then turned to the staring Howard, who didn't get rid of his incredulous gaze from Robbie, "Can you please get me some water for him?"

At first Howard did not react, but with the second invitation he received wordlessly at Gary's request. While the elder disappeared towards the kitchen, Gary continued to talk to his friend, hoping Robbie recovered from his shock as soon as possible and found himself back. Gary had already seen him in all the states and also in such a similar one as this one, but because of the situation of her and the present situation, he got to do something with the fear. Somehow he could imagine all too well that such a condition of Robbie's small body did not benefit and thus hurt him more than in its normal size.

The moment Howard rejoined his side and handed him a water-filled liquor glass, he looked up to this one briefly, narrowly thanking him and somehow trying to give Robbie some water. After he managed to in-still some water in his little friend and he slowly regained colour on his face and became visibly calmer, Gary breathed an audible manner. There had already been something scary about seeing this little guy like that. 

 

At one point, Robbie slowly sat up and more than desperately sought eye contact with Gary. Whenever he fared badly, he escaped into the healing world each time the Gary's eyes radiated. It was like a sanctuary for him where he could fall and feel absolutely safe. A place he has been missing for several weeks more than anything else. The words he had thrown at Gary's head – that for him he was just something of a pastime, he deeply regretted and wished them longingly that he could turn back Time. To a time when they still shared a bed together and they lay arm in arm and cuddled with each other until the early midday hours. He would be only too happy to have that back.

When he finally looked into the blue-green eyes of his ex-boyfriend, he felt a little better, but a remnant of his inner restlessness remained with him, which was because of the closeness to Howard. He needed more than urgent distance from this giant "Monster" named Howard. But since Robbie somehow didn't dare to lose a word about the fact that he preferred to keep the older one at a distance, this probably won't happen either. So he felt even smaller now than he already was and just wanted one more. Hiding under Gary's rock tips. Unfortunately, Gary didn't have a skirt and so Robbie suddenly started tearing out and then couldn't be seen again. For Howard, this was far too fast and therefore could not say where little Robbie had disappeared. 

"Um, ...not really but I have such a clue. You know what Doug. I would suggest you get him clothes that he can dress and I will look for him in the meantime. Would you please do this favour for me? "Gary could already think to himself, prompting Robbie to this nimble escape, cautiously suggesting that Howard make himself useful to Robbie's good.

 

No sooner had Howard agreed to this wordlessly and with a nod than he was already on his way to the city centre to pursue Gary a favour. When Gary knew his best mate had left the building, he carefully placed a hand on one of his trouser pockets and could feel something moving.


End file.
